Contact Your Senators: Preserving Teaching American History Grant Funding

NCHE Executive Director Peter Seibert has sent History Education Hawaii the following. Your advocacy is needed NOW:

This morning I received word from our advocacy firm that the U.S. House of Representatives is proposing the elimination of all TAH funding in the new Continuing Resolution (CR) that is being brought forward this week. This is extremely serious as this would effectively eliminate the program this year (not only the just-filed grants but also the year four and five grants as well) and could jeopardize support going forward. This came up very quickly and it appears the Senate is resisting. However, the program could still be eliminated or significantly reduced. Thus, we need you to act today!!!

The action steps needed are this:

1) Please call or email your Senators to tell them of your concern about the elimination of this funding by the House. We are bipartisan organization and both Republican and Democratic Senators have supported this program so affiliation is not the issue. Contact the local or district office for your Senator (I can provide you with that information if you are not sure) as this is often more effective that calling the DC offices where you will be one of a myriad of callers into their switchboards.

2) Identify yourself as a constituent (always vital) and outline your concern with the proposed elimination of TAH funding by the House in the forthcoming Continuing Resolution. It is important to focus on the impact of the program in your state (if you need information on this, email me directly and I will get you figures on the number of grants awarded over time). It is also important to stress the importance of history in the curriculum and that TAH is the only federal program to support professional development in history education.

3) Ask them to maintain TAH funding at the same level as last year and not to approve elimination of this funding.

4) Contact your colleagues, TAH teachers, museums, etc., on this.


Additional steps:

1) Contact your U.S.. House member on this issue. The House is not unified in this cut and pressure can be brought to bear upon leadership on both sides to fight to save this program. Again, use the same action steps as above.

2) Home Run Actions. Speak to your Senator directly! A tough one but this ensures that the message gets through the web of staffers.
Contact your Governor and ask him/her to call your Senators on this issue.

Time is of the essence as we have only a few days to act on this surprising action!